How to Volunteer from Home

June 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Amnesty International 

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Volunteering for a non-profit organization can be a wonderful, enriching experience. However, in today’s busy world, it’s not always possible to pitch in. Fortunately, there are easy ways that you can help from home. Here are a few ways you can easily contribute to worthy organizations.

Work to end a human rights violation by sending an email. Amnesty International’s Online Action Center sends action alerts each week. The alert has a pre-written email message that details the issue and encourages state senators or government officials to take action. All you have to do is sign your name to the message.

Volunteer for Hugs and Hope, an organization that works with terminally ill children. The organization provides brief biographies of sick children, as well as their addresses. You can send a cheerful card to help brighten their day.

Send supplies to a family in need through Project Box, which connects sponsor volunteers with rural families who struggle to provide their children with basic necessities. Each month, you simply choose supplies to send; they can be anything from school supplies to shampoo, soap and deodorant. You can develop a relationship with the family through their monthly letters as well.

If you have a website or blog, add an Amber Alert ticker. The ticker will display pictures of children who have been reported missing. You’ll be helping get the message out about the child’s disappearance, and perhaps someone who visits your site can help the cause.

Utilize your talents to help a worthy organization. Offer to volunteer for a local charity by designing a website, proofreading brochures or writing promotional material for the organization.

 

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How a Non-Profit Can Increase Its Efficiency

February 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Non-profit organizations feel the same effects during a recession as private organizations do. They all struggle, and they all need help in order to move forward and continue to help those who need their services. It’s important to be as efficient as possible in any organization. There are various ways in which you can do that, and it’s important to explore them carefully and thoroughly. Then you can make the right choice for your company and be able to thrive even when the economy isn’t that good.

One way to be more efficient is to utilize online software for collaboration. That way, you aren’t spending a lot of money on software when you could be using something for free. Don’t spend money that you don’t have to spend. Just use the free options and free versions of software, unless you absolutely can’t accomplish what you need that way. Also, pay close attention to social media, and get involved with it. When you do that you can promote your cause for free. You can also get involved with other non-profit companies that have similar or related goals, and then you can promote one another. It’s a great way to get even more free advertising.

Consider supplying your employees with a prepaid credit card, too, for anything work related they may normally buy, like office supplies, gasoline for a company vehicle, or similar expenses. If you do that, you can keep better track of how much you’re spending and you’ll be more comfortable giving your employees the chance to purchase their own items to a certain extent. The more you do in an effort to save money and spend less, the better off you’ll be when it comes to weathering a recession. That will help you and your employees, along with the people who need the services your company offers.

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Daytime Volunteers

December 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Rumor has it that nonprofit organizations are struggling to find volunteers that able to help during traditional business hours. It may seem as if it is more difficult to find volunteers for daytime activities because more women are going into the workforce and less are staying at home, but nonprofit organizations are finding volunteer recruitments by thinking outside of the box.

Many people in the workforce do not keep regular business hours, so find volunteers during business hours is becoming easier. With the work from home craze in full swing, it is easy to find volunteers who have the flexibility to volunteer at all hours of the day. People who work from home can change their schedule as they please to volunteer for nonprofit organizations. The organizations that need more daytime volunteers just need to look for individuals who work at home in the right place to hang a recruitment flyer. Coffee shops and Internet cafes are a good place to start because most people who work at home will get out of the house at least once a week to work.

Although there are still millions of people who work regular jobs that does not mean they keep regular business hours. Many people work during the weekend and in the evening. Many businesses like gas stations, hospitals, and fast food establishments are open 24-hours a day, which mean some of their employees are available during the daytime hours to pitch in a helping hand. Individuals that work during the evening hours have their mornings and afternoons available.

Some businesses require their employees to work some weekends, which offers their employees a day off during the traditional business week. Many service-type businesses that are open for operation seven days a week are the same way, they give days off during the week, which gives their employees a chance to volunteer during daytime hours.

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Voluntourism: Good Deeds and Fun

December 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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Voluntourism is not a new concept in the world of charity work, but it is making headlines around the world. Charities are using voluntourism as a way to reach individuals who love to travel, but also who love helping others. Organizations are looking for individuals who want to take a vacation, but are able to do some volunteering while visiting the location. Nonprofit organizations and travel agencies are getting involved in organizing vacations for volunteering efforts.
Voluntourism is the most common term for vacation relief efforts, but it is also known as travel philanthropy and ethical holidays. When an ethical holiday is properly organized, the volunteer can help others while taking advantage of a vacation. Many people are not aware of the opportunities of voluntourism and organizations are calling for people with a strong work ethic who want to spend time helping others while having a good time.
Families can take advantage of voluntourism opportunities around the world. The experience can teach children the importance of helping others while still giving them the opportunity to have a lot of fun. Single individuals also take advantage of voluntourism opportunities because they do not want to travel by themselves. Voluntourism activities allow them to go on vacation while helping others and creating friendships.
Voluntourist help nonprofit organizations to complete projects because there is a need for many volunteers. Natural disasters are a good example of an organization’s need to have a lot of people available to help with clean up and rebuilding. Most of these locations hit by a natural disaster require many years of clean up efforts and many volunteers. Organizations can keep the work going for many years by bringing new volunteers while promising them a vacation too. Many voluntourist have enjoyed the fulfilling work so much that each year they sign up to help with natural disaster efforts through the same organizations.

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Changing the World, One Young Person at a Time

December 9, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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Volunteering is a call for many people. Some individuals want to be close to those they are helping by distributing goods or serving food at a homeless shelter, but others want to work by marketing the charity or raising funds to help those in need. Volunteers will help where they feel that their talents will offer the most good for others. Young people more so than older volunteers will fight to be where they can help the most people.
Many adult volunteers do not believe that the younger volunteers have what it takes to make a difference, but young volunteers are using their voice to make important changes. Whether they are on the front lines or behind the activities, young individuals are making changes in policies and finding more ways to get the funding an organization needs to help others.
Young volunteers have a desire to help others and they have a fresh outlook on the process. Many older volunteers are cynical because they do not always see a change in the hard work that they put into helping others. Young volunteers have the determination to do what older volunteers do not have and they demand change. They use their volunteer efforts to learn and fight for something larger than they are as individuals.
Parents who have children that are driven to change the world can nurture their child’s ambition by volunteering by their side. Older adults who volunteer closely with the youth of American are feeling inspired like they were when they were younger. Adults are influenced by the innocence of younger volunteers and learning to listen when they had lost that skill from being hardened. Young volunteers should not be pushed aside; others should nourish them in the organization because they are the next generation in nonprofit organizations.

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Unemployed? Why not try volunteering to get some skills

October 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

If you are unemployed you need not worry. Sometimes skill-sets need a brush-up. Places to do that are not really the workplace, because they pay you to do what they want and not what you want. The economic downturn has forced people out of jobs. People with skills that are not indispensable find themselves at the receiving end of employers. Customer churn in large corporations has sparked this trend.

All is not lost when you are unemployed due to lack of skill sets. A great way to start renewing or acquiring skills can be by joining nonprofit organizations. You might not make a great profit with these organizations, but you will definitely be rewarded in gaining valuable experience.

You can start off with so many nonprofit organizations. There are NGOs that build houses for the poor. There might be another that teaches foreign languages. The experience gained in doing all this is invaluable. If you are a civil engineer and you volunteer to design and build houses for a NGO, then this always adds value to your resume. You can easily show this as an accomplishment to employers, and they will definitely be impressed with your effort.

Volunteering can be the gateway to a great job. In the initial stages of a career, a good break in good companies might be difficult. Take for example, the case of a software development professional who is trying to get a good break into top software organizations after graduation. If this person takes up volunteering work, this imposes a lot of weight to the resume. Solely because volunteering to build free software is an act of ingenuity, and most software organizations want that trait in their employees.

All said and done, volunteering is always beneficial for people who do it. People stand to gain from the experience and exposure they receive from volunteering. Volunteering is an enriching and enlightening experience, and teaches a lot of important and critical life skills.

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Meet New People Through Volunteering

October 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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If you are new to an area or would just like to meet new friends, consider volunteering for a local non-profit organization. While you help other people, you could expand your social network and have a little fun at the same time. It’s definitely a win-win situation.

Regardless of your age or skill-set, there’s a volunteer opportunity out there for you. If you’re a teenager who has a lot of time on their hands over the summer or on weekends, volunteering could fill that gap. Many volunteer opportunities are perfect for young people. Some museums will allow a teenager to act as a tour guide or work in the gift shop. Local parks often run theater programs that depend on volunteerism to create productions. A teenager could find themselves selling tickets, creating scenery, running the lights, or even acting on the stage. In the meantime, they will be making new friendships that could last for a lifetime.

Many senior citizens find that they have too much time on their hands after retirement. This is especially true if their families are busy or live in other areas. If an older person begins to live an isolated and sedentary lifestyle, their health will decline much faster than if they remain active both physically and socially. Volunteering will also provide them with a sense of purpose and usefulness. Everyone’s life is better when they feel needed.

If you don’t fall into either of these two groups, volunteering is still a good way to become active in the community. Many people would admit that it can be hard to make friends as work and family responsibilities begin to take over. Volunteering can help anyone become involved in the community again and feel like they are a part of things. It will also allow people to meet and become friends who would never have crossed paths otherwise.

The next time you’re feeling a little lonely or left out, consider joining a volunteer program. There’s nothing like the feeling that comes from helping others and you may find that you help yourself at the same time.

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Put Your Creative Side to Work by Volunteering

October 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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Many people may not think that they have anything to offer the volunteering world. However, unusual skillets can be hard to find and in high demand. If you’re creative, you have an endless list of opportunities for volunteering.

If you’re artistic, you can put that skill to good use and expose your talents to the world. By volunteering to teach children basic art skills, you could inspire the next major art talent. You could help with an art therapy group if you’re interested in helping people with mental and physical challenges. If you would prefer to not work with groups of people, most museums always need volunteers to help out. Some parks and recreation departments present plays to the public for free or a small charge. You could help create scenery or design the promotional material.

You could combine your artistic abilities with other interests by volunteering with virtually any non-profit organization by helping to create pamphlets or websites. Your skills could be invaluable to their fund-raising efforts. Interesting window displays or posters could also generate a lot of community interest and reach new volunteers or clients.

Musical talent shouldn’t be overlooked. Just like there are opportunities for art teachers, schools and after-school organizations are always looking for musical presentations or instruction for their students. You could make the difference in a child’s life just by playing your favorite instrument or letting them try it out. As many schools make budget cuts, some children may find that they aren’t exposed to musical instruction unless volunteers make it possible.

Another way to use your musical or artistic talent is to volunteer at a hospice or nursing home. Many of these people need a distraction from their health problems. Some are lonely and receive few visitors. They would welcome the opportunity to simply listen to someone play an instrument or sing.

Artwork is also very soothing to some patients. It could remind them of better times or take their mind off their current situation. You could ask them to describe their favorite memory and create a piece of artwork for them to remember it by.

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Why Volunteering is Important

October 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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Most people know that there are those less fortunate out there, and most people feel bad when they hear stories of loss or hardship. However, not everyone acts on their emotions. Most people don’t realize what a difference they can make in someones life if they’d just take some time to volunteer.

With so many options available, you can choose the charity or non-profit organization that appeals to you the most, and donate your time. While numerous people are needed to do volunteer work in the soup kitchens or homeless shelters, that’s not the only volunteer options available in your local area. Teen clinics, crisis centers and women’s shelters all take volunteers on a regular basis. People also volunteer at food banks, hospitals, your local VA and nursing homes.

Even if you feel that you’re not the right person to handle needy people on a one-on-one basis, your volunteer options aren’t limited. Many non-profit organizations use people who volunteer to answer phones in their office, or call people and ask them to make donations. While phone work may sound difficult, you’re typically calling people who have donated money to the organization in the past, so they are aware that the phone calls come at some point during the year.

You’d be surprised at how much people appreciate the small things you do. Even a simple task as reading stories to the elderly is something that people greatly appreciate. Not only is doing volunteer work important to those in need, it helps you to feel better about yourself. The old saying “what goes around comes around” plays a huge role in the lives of those who do volunteer work. You’d be surprised at how your life becomes a lot less stressful just because you took the time out to help those in need.

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Volunteering In The Future

October 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment
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As we move along into the second decade of the new millennium and technology advances, so does the way person volunteers. Volunteering has always been way to help out others that are less fortunate or have encountered an extreme hardship. When volunteers can not travel to other countries to help those in need, they look for other ways to help. Sometimes volunteers will help others in their own community, or donate funds to help a cause that is far away. Now with the advancement in technology, people are looking towards the computer to help with volunteer efforts. The virtual volunteer has been born.

A virtual volunteer is a volunteer who uses a computer and internet in one location to complete tasks to assist an organization in a different location. Virtual volunteering is also known as cyber service, online volunteering, teletutoring, telementoring, and other similar titles. A person that is virtual volunteering is just like a person working from home, yet they are not getting paid for their work. These individuals typically work for nonprofit organizations, government programs, schools, or other such not-for-profit entity.

There are thousands of organizations and entities that utilize virtual volunteers. At one time, the Virtual Volunteering Project identified organizations that were using online volunteers, which were about 100 in April of 1999. But, by the year 2000, the Virtual Volunteering Project could not keep up with the growing numbers and stopped keeping track. Instead, it turned to promoting the practice of virtual volunteering along with creating guidelines and profiling organizations that had unique or large volunteering programs.

Statistical reports rarely include a breakdown of virtual volunteering and even doing an online search will produce bare results. Some statistics are available from the United Nations virtual volunteering service, VolunteerMach and Idealist. As of June 2010, VolunteerMatch reported that approximately 5% of its active volunteer population is virtual volunteers. As more people realize that computer and internet skills can be utilized in a voluntary role, the numbers of virtual volunteers may rise.

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